The three holidays that make up the “holiday season” are Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. In America, Christmas, the Christian holiday, is by far the most popular. It celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God and founder of Christianity, who would later go on to die for our sins.

“And the angel said to her in reply, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. Therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.” — Luke 1:35, New American Bible

Christmas is probably, with the exception of Easter, the most important Christian holiday, being that it celebrates the day God took on a human form in order to save all of humanity.

Hanukkah is the Jewish holiday celebrated at this time of year. It marks the rededication of the temple on Mount Zion after its desecration at the hands of the gentiles.

“Then Judas and his brothers and the entire congregation of Israel decreed that the days of the dedication of the alter should be observed with joy and gladness on the anniversary every year for eight days, from the twenty-fifth day of the month Chislev.” — Maccabees 4:59, New American Bible

What Hanukkah has become, however, is  

simply the Jewish alternative to Christmas. Though Hanukkah undoubtedly celebrates something important, the rededication of a temple doesn’t compare to things like Rosh Hashanah, which celebrates the creation of man and the day God judges the world, or Passover, which celebrates the passing over of the Angel of Death from the Jewish households, ultimately leading to their freedom from slavery. Without Christmas, Hanukkah would most likely be a relatively unknown holiday, at least to the non-Jewish community.

Kwanzaa, on the other hand, is a little more obscure. It is a 42-year-old holiday that was created as an African-culture-based holiday alternative for black, Marxist radicals who were neither Christian nor Jewish. Really. I’m not making that up. But it has evolved into just another Christmas substitute. As Dr. Maulana Karenga, the one who made up Kwanzaa out of thin air said, “… It was chosen to give a Black alternative to the existing holiday and give Blacks an opportunity to celebrate themselves and history, rather than simply imitate the practice of the dominant society.”

Believe it or not, I couldn’t find a Bible quote for this one.

The “holiday season” only exists because of Christmas, yet you can’t mention any of these holidays — Christmas especially — in public. That is why we go on winter break, put up a holiday tree, attend WinterFest at Iowa State and shop in the holiday section at Wal-Mart. For some strange reason, it has even become unacceptable to tell someone to have a Merry Christmas because they might be offended if they’re not a Christian.

That’s right. Some people are offended if you wish them a nice day, if that day happens to be a religious holiday. Stop and think about that for a minute. How does that happen? Has political correctness really seeped so far into American culture that you even have to be careful when telling someone to have a good day? I’m a Christian and I celebrate Christmas, but I still hope that my Hanukkah is happy and my Kwanzaa is joyful, and I’d be pleased to have someone tell me so. That my telling someone to have a Merry Christmas could offend someone is baffling to me.

So whether you choose to celebrate it or not, I sincerely hope that you all have a very Merry Christmas.